International
The number of children killed in conflicts tripled in 2023, the United Nations denounces
The number of children who died in global conflicts tripled in 2023 compared to the previous year, and the number of women doubled, denounced on Tuesday the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights, Volker Türk, in his update on the situation of fundamental freedoms on the planet.
In total, the civilian victims in the multiple conflicts that ravage the planet in places such as Gaza, Ukraine, Sudan, Burma, Syria or Yemen, among many others, grew by 72%, Türk said at the opening of the 56th session of the Human Rights Council, citing statistics from the office he heads.
“It is disheartening to see how the different parties to the conflict exceed the limits of the acceptable and legal on many fronts, with a total contempt for the other, trampling on human rights,” the head of human rights told the delegations of the United Nations member states.
Faced with this, “the murder of civilians has become a daily routine, as well as the destruction of infrastructure. Children who are shot, hospitals bombed, heavy artillery against entire communities,” he denounced.
Türk gave as a first example of these abuses the situation in Gaza, where he recalled that 120,000 people have been killed or injured in eight months of Israeli attacks.
“The relentless attacks in Gaza are causing immense suffering and widespread destruction, and the arbitrary obstruction of humanitarian aid continues. Israel continues to arbitrarily detain thousands of Palestinians. This cannot continue,” Türk said, recalling that UN reports indicate that Israel and Hamas could be committing war crimes.
The Austrian also stressed that since in May Israel intensified its operations in Rafah, in the southern end of the Gaza Strip and the last refuge for many Palestinians who left their homes in areas further north, “more than a million Palestinians have necessarily had to move once again.”
In the war in Ukraine, the High Commissioner expressed his concern about the deterioration of the country’s situation after two and a half years of Russian invasion and particularly denounced the situation in Kharkov, where the recent Russian land offensive “has destroyed entire communities.”
“Many inhabitants, mostly elderly, hide in the basements, without electricity, water or adequate food, while the area suffers intense attacks with explosives,” said the Austrian.
Türk also recalled that the repeated waves of large-scale attacks by Russia against energy infrastructure have destroyed 68% of Ukraine’s electricity production capacity, “placing the system at a point of no return, especially for the winter.”
But Türk also alluded to other conflicts less present in the headlines and televisions, in places such as the Sahel, the Democratic Republic of the Congo, Syria, Haiti or Sudan, the latter country that according to the High Commissioner “is being destroyed before our eyes.”
The generals at the head of the two sides in conflict in Sudan “have responsibility in the commission of possible war crimes and other atrocities,” including ethnic attacks and sexual violence, he said.
“They are ultimately responsible for the impact of their actions on civilians, with effects such as mass displacement, the threat of famine, or an ever-increasing humanitarian disaster,” said the high commissioner.
At other levels that do not yet reach the open conflict, Türk also warned on Tuesday about the speeches “that turn migrants into scapegoats,” something that in his opinion has become common “between populists and the extreme right” in electoral campaigns in Europe, North America and other regions.
He also denounced setbacks in the situation of women and girls from various countries, with flagrant examples in Iran and Afghanistan, where they suffer serious violations of their fundamental freedoms.
International
Peruvian presidential candidate Napoleón Becerra dies in campaign road accident
Presidential candidate Napoleón Becerra, representing the Partido de los Trabajadores y Emprendedores (PTE) in Peru, died in a traffic accident while traveling to a campaign event, local authorities confirmed Sunday.
Becerra, who also served as president of the centrist political party, ranked among the lowest in opinion polls in a crowded field of more than 30 candidates competing in the presidential election scheduled for April 12.
Recent surveys place Rafael López Aliaga at the top of voter preferences.
The accident occurred near the town of Ayacucho, in southern Peru, when the vehicle carrying the candidate overturned for reasons that remain under investigation.
“The candidate Becerra has died,” Balvin Huamani, mayor of the district of Pilpichaca, told RPP radio.
According to Huamani, he personally transported the 61-year-old candidate to a local health center, where doctors confirmed his death.
The Jurado Nacional de Elecciones (JNE) expressed condolences over Becerra’s passing and wished a speedy recovery to the three people who were traveling with him and were injured in the crash.
International
Noboa intensifies anti-cartel crackdown as violence persists in Ecuador
A close ally of Washington, Ecuadorian President Daniel Noboa has pursued a hardline security strategy against cocaine cartels for more than two years, yet homicide, disappearance and extortion rates remain high across the country.
Between Sunday night and the morning of March 31, Ecuador’s armed forces will launch a “very strong offensive” with “advisory support” from the United States, Interior Minister John Reimberg announced Tuesday.
The government has kept details of the operation confidential and has not confirmed whether U.S. troops will be deployed on Ecuadorian soil, as has occurred at times during Noboa’s administration.
As part of the security measures, residents in the coastal provinces of Guayas, Los Ríos, Santo Domingo de los Tsáchilas, and El Oro will be subject to a nightly curfew from 11:00 p.m. to 5:00 a.m. local time for the next two weeks.
“We are in a war,” Reimberg said, urging citizens to remain indoors. “Do not take risks. Stay home and allow the security forces and our allies to do the work that must be done.”
Although Ecuador does not produce cocaine, it has become a major departure point for drugs heading to the United States. Meanwhile, the violence associated with trafficking has increasingly affected the local population.
Bordering the world’s largest cocaine producers, Colombia and Peru, Ecuador has gone from being considered a relatively peaceful country to recording one of the highest homicide rates in Latin America—52 killings per 100,000 inhabitants—according to the **Observatory of Organized Crime.
International
Peruvian presidential candidate proposes death penalty amid crime surge
Peru is facing an unprecedented surge in crime ahead of its presidential election scheduled for April 12, with violence fueled by extortion networks and a wave of contract killings linked to organized crime.
Police data show that 2,200 homicides tied to organized crime were recorded in 2025, while extortion complaints increased by 19%, underscoring the growing security crisis in the South American nation.
Amid this backdrop, presidential candidate Álvarez has proposed reinstating the death penalty if elected, arguing that extreme measures are needed to curb the violence.
To implement the proposal, Álvarez said Peru would withdraw from the American Convention on Human Rights—also known as the Pact of San José—which the country signed in 1978. The agreement prevents member states that have abolished capital punishment from reinstating it.
Currently, Peruvian law only allows the death penalty in cases of treason during wartime.
“We have to leave the Pact of San José and apply the death penalty in Peru because those miserable criminals don’t deserve to live,” Álvarez told AFP during a campaign stop at a market in Callao, the port city neighboring Lima.
“An iron fist against those criminals,” he added, proposing to declare hitmen as military targets.
During the campaign event, Álvarez walked through stalls selling vegetables, groceries, and fish, greeting vendors while musicians played cumbia music nearby.
The 62-year-old candidate, who spent more than four decades working in television as a comedian, is a newcomer to politics and is running for president under the País para Todos party.
Polls place him fifth in voter preference with nearly 4% support in a fragmented race featuring 36 candidates.
“I am an artist who has taken a step into politics to bring peace to my country,” Álvarez told reporters while surrounded by supporters.
Peruvian presidential candidate Napoleón Becerra dies in campaign road accident
Noboa intensifies anti-cartel crackdown as violence persists in Ecuador
Peruvian presidential candidate proposes death penalty amid crime surge
Tec de Monterrey honors one of its students for his contribution to nanotechnology in medicine
Defense Minister commends salvadoran soldier for Central American Cross Country victory
Extension of the state of emergency approved in southern Chile
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